Ornamental Grass? Cut it down.

Ornamental grasses require serious spring pruning. My Zebra Grass was beautiful last summer. Two clumps started out as 2 gallon plants about five years ago and now, by the end of summer, they are higher than my head and about 30 inches in diameter.

I like to leave the tall stalks standing for winter and architectural interest in the garden. The seed heads provide some needed food for birds, too.

Now, the browned dry stalks must make way for new growth. The last few years I have used my handy dandy hand pruners to cut, cut, cut through stalks, a long blister producing process. Yesterday, I tried a different technique.

I wrapped heavy twine around the plant near the bottom. Notice the red horizontal line. That's my twine. I pulled it as tight as I could and tied it in place. This morning, my walking partner said, "Joe would have used a bungee cord. He uses bungee cords for everything." I think that would be an excellent option. Duct tape might be another option . I think one of these options used in the center of the stalk might hold it together so you have a bundle after the cutting process.

My husband, David, brought out the heavy artillery, his chain saw. He fired it up and cut through the stalks below my twine. If you use twine, cut off any excess. I didn't, and it clogged up the chain. We discovered that if I pulled the stalks away from the saw, it speeded the process on the second clump. Pulling the loose stalks away from the saw also lessened the likelihood of jamming the chain with loose grass.

Cut them down close to the ground, 4 inches, or so.

The clean up process was simple. David gathered the stalks in his arms and put them into the back of the pickup. Now, I just need to rake the remaining debris and I'm ready for new growth.